SOUTHPORT, MERSEYSIDE, ENGLAND – American Jackson Suber, on his first trip to Europe, leads the 154th Open Championship.
Behind him, however, a cartographer’s dream is on his heels as once again the Open Championship proves itself the de facto world championship of golf, as players from around the world populate the top of the leaderboard. Though six Americans are in the top 13 after day one of the Open, players from Korea, Germany, Scotland, Italy, Austria, Sweden, Japan, France, Canada, and South Africa are all within three strokes of the lead.
Englishmen in particular had a strong showing in Round 1. After bogeying the fourth hole, Dan Brown, the bearded Yorkshireman with the wry humor, birdied Nos. 8, 9 and 10 to close the front nine with 33, then made two bogeys against four more birdies on the back to finish with a brilliant 4-under 66, one shot behind Suber and tied with Sungjae Im. Fellow countrymen Matt Wallace, Jordan Smith, and Laurie Canter fired 2-under-par 68s to sit three behind the lead.
There were two bogey-free rounds on Thursday, Ryo Hisatsune from Japan fired a clean-card 68 and Norway’s Kristoffer Reitan shot a mistake-free 69.
After playing his first ever round of links golf in his life on Monday, Suber’s 65 featured an eagle at the par-5 17th.
"Things just really started going after the birdie on 10. I just felt like the momentum was really in my favour," Suber said. "Just kind of kept the ball in good spots and didn't put much pressure on my game to make pars. This is my fifth day here. Monday was my first round of links golf, so I've played 27 holes before I played the first round today. I've never been to Europe."
After posting ever-par 34 on the front nine, Suber birdied 10, 11, 14 and 16 before his scintillating 4-iron approach covered the flag at 17.
"I choked up pretty far on it almost to the shaft. Ball was way above my feet, but got it over that bunker and in that collection area and got a good bounce up on to the green," he explained.
But that’s links golf, especially on hard, fast, firm surfaces: one, sometimes even two or three bounces, and on. Todd Hamilton won a claret jug that way in 2004 at Royal Troon. Creative, inventive shots, especially around the greens, are essential at the Open.
"This year I feel like I've been really coming into myself as a golfer and maturing and learning what makes -- what works for me," Suber observed candidly. "Just learning how to deal with my golf game on the road and playing a whole year and what I need to change when things are going a certain way and kind of what I need to be -- how I need to be calibrating stuff every day."
Neither the hot weather -- it’s been 84 and sunny every day for over a week, and there's no sign of letting up -- nor Birkdale’s intricacies flustered the phlegmatic Im, who posted his best first-round score in six Open Championship starts. He balanced five birdies against a single bogey at the sixth, and his 4-under-par back nine, including four birdies, bodes well for the rest of the week.
"The wind wasn't too strong today, so I didn't have much trouble with my tee shots or second shots," Im said. "I had visualized the course plan and memorized my tee shots and layups beforehand. Sticking to my routine worked out really well. I didn’t force anything, and whenever I had a chance, my putts dropped."
Im said Birkdale inspired confidence from the get-go this week.
"I've had a good feeling about this course since the practice rounds," he added. "Honestly, I'd say it’s the tightest Open course I’ve ever played. On some holes, you are forced to lay up with other clubs instead of hitting the driver, mostly because of where the bunkers are positioned. Since the club choices are basically set for you, it actually removes the risk and makes things feel much more comfortable. As long as you keep the ball on the fairway, the course doesn't play too difficult. That aspect really suits my style. And I actually find it much easier to swing when it's warm or hot. The current weather is absolutely perfect for me."
